Truck for mine cars



Sept. 27, 1927.

J. R. FLEMING TRUCK FOR MINE `GARS Filed Feb. 9. 1926 4 LIM PatentedSept. 27, 1927.

U N I T E D SIT S 1,643,298 PAfrENT'l orifice.

JAMES a. FLEMING, or soRANTouf, PENNSYLVANIA.

TRUCK ForN Application l-led February This invention relates to ruiminggear for mine cars or the like, and particularly to the wheels and axlesthereof. l

It is a practice to use wheels, the hubs of which are adapted to receivethe axle in such manner that there will be a shouldered contact betweenthe axle and the hubs to limit the movement of the wheels toward eachother. In this construction, the wheels have usually been held looselyon the axle, so that they are free to rotate independently of each otherand independently ofthe axle.

IVhere, however, in the construction in which journal boxes are usedwhich include antifriction bearings for the axle, it 1s essential thatone of the wheels be rigidly secured to the axle, and it is desirable tosecure theother wheel tothe axle at timesso that it will rotateindependently thereon, and at other times so that it will rotate withthe axle.

My invention contemplates the provision of a running gear of this typewherein means is provided to secure one of the wheels to the axlerigidly, and to selectively secure the other wheel to the axle eitherrigidly or rotatably.

t is an object of this invention to so con struct the truck that thewheels may be interchangeably used on the opposite ends of the axle andso that, when the truck goes around a curve in the track, the rela-tivemovement between the axle and the loose wheel will be of such a limitedextent that the necessity for lubricating the surface contact betweenthe hub of the wheel and the axle will be obviated.

In the drawing rlhe figure is a longitudinal, sectional view' throughthe truck.

The embodiment of the invention disclosed in the drawings includes anaxle 1 on which are mounted journal boxes 2 of the antifriction type, onwhich journal boxes the car bottom 3 is supported.

The hubs l and 5 of t-he wheels 6 and 7 which are mounted on the ends ofthe axle 1 are provided with axial openings which extend through thehubs and have shoulders 9 formed therein. These axial openings 8 areadapted to receive the ends of the axle and the axle is provided withshoulders 10 which are adapted to cooperate .with the shoulders 9 on thehubs of the wheel to prevent the movement of the wheels toward each ofthe hubs 4t and 5 is provided with an open- MINEv sans.

9, 1926. Serial No; 87,008;

ling 11 which is adapted toaIignY with 4aj complementari-opening 12 inthe adjacent endl of the axle 1. When it is desired to secure both ofthe wheels rigidly to the axlethis may be done by inserting' pins orbolts 13 through the openings 11 in the hubs of both wheels vwords,-isof a length greater than the `dis-` tance between the end of the hub andthe shoulder contact 9-10 between the hub and the axle. In this extendedport-ion of the axle I provide an opening 14 which is adapted to receivea locking element such as a cotter pin' 15, and is located a vsufficientdistance from the end of the hub to permit thekmounting of a washer 16between the Cotter pin and the end of the hub.

This washer is loosely mounted -on the axle so that when it contactswith the Cotter pin 15 it will cease its rotative movement due to itsfrictional engagement with the end of the hub and the axle, and therelative movement will thereafter be between the face of the wazher andthe end of the hub.

In assembling the elements of the truck it is perfectly obvious thatboth of the wheels may be secured to the axle by inserting the bolts 13through the openings kin the hubs and the aligned openings in the axle,or 'that but one of the wheels may be secured in this manner and theother wheel secured to thek axleso that it will rotate thereon bypassing the Cotter pin 15 through the opening at the end of the axle andomitting the pin 13.

l/Vhen the two tight wheels, that is to say, the two wheels which arerigidly secured to the axle arek used, and the truck passes around acurve, there being no differential action, one of the wheels must ofcourse slip on the rail. This of course isincident to the greatervtravel of the wheel on the outside curve than that on the inside curve.By n thel construction which I have hereinbefore described, where theone wheel is rigidly secured to the axle and the other secured so thatit may rotate with relation thereto, the

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slippage is prevented `and the loose Wheel rotates with relation to theaxle only to the extent sufficient to take care of the slippage whichwould be incident to the use of two tight Wheels, that is to say, twoWheels which are rigidly secured to the axle. The result of thisconstruction is that the undesirable slippage which is incident to theuse of two tight Wheels is eliminated.

Vhat I claim is:

A device of the class described comprising an axle having a reducedportion at its end providing` a shoulder, a Wheel mounted on Said endand having an elongat'ec'l hub, the hub of said Wheel having a bore ot'different diameters providing a shoulder' for cooperation With theshoulder on the axle, anda fastening member extending through openingsin theA hub and the reduced portion of the axle.

JAMES R. FLEMING.

